"I don't want your help. Please Booth! I need to do this myself!"
Temperance was standing, hanging onto the end of the bed. Booth had her walking frame in his hands ready to place it in front of her. But it only infuriated her.
"I don't need it!" she cried. Booth let out a long slow breath. Her recovery was taking a lot longer than she wanted it to. He was well aware that her brain injury had affected her motor skills to an extent. Her muscles had lost density, and she was often angry at herself for being weak.
"Fine. Stagger to the bathroom by yourself. Fall over, hurt yourself. Go on. Crawl if you want to. You're stubborn Bones. Damn stubborn!" he yelled at her and turned and walked out the door, then immediately felt guilty. He understood it. He had gone through the same thing when he had woken up from his coma. She hadn't seen a lot of it. He had not let her be there during his physiotherapy sessions. She wasn't there when he stumbled and fell. She never knew the pain, the anger, the embarrassment he went through. She never saw him crawling on his belly because he refused help. She didn't see him struggling with the simple daily things, like putting on his own socks. Tying his shoe laces. Pulling up his own pants. Having a shower by himself without a carer standing in the door of the shower watching him. It was demoralising, degrading, infuriating. He knew the pain. And he also knew how stubborn he had been at times. But. He also knew that without help, she was going to struggle, get frustrated and upset and he couldn't bear to see her suffer as he had. She was a proud woman, and he had to .
He heard her grunting, shuffling across the floor. Then a thump. His heart jumped into his throat, but he stayed outside the room. She wanted to do it by herself. He was going to let her, unless she got herself into trouble and asked for his help. He was distracted by a loud wail coming from the twins nursery. He sighed and walked over and opened the door.
He took a deep breath as he walked into the room and was assaulted by a violent odour. He shook his head. Not again? He was still struggling with dirty nappies. He thought he had a fairly strong stomach, but some days. How on earth does someone so small create such a large amount of poop? he thought as he picked up the offender. He held his breath, his nose screwed up as he lay his son on the change table and tried not to breathe as he removed the nappy. "Oh my god. You have got to be kidding me" he muttered as he rolled up the dirty nappy and grabbed a handful of nappy wipes and started wiping the mess from the baby's behind, his large hand holding two tiny feet with curled up toes. "How do you do that?" he asked as his son gurgled and smiled a big toothless grin at his father, his little arms waving, hands opening and closing.
Booth finally smiled back at him. He threw the dirty nappy and wipes in the bucket and sprinkled some baby powder around his son's rosy bottom and smoothed it over his soft skin. He then bent over and blew a big raspberry on his belly, making him chuckle that sweet baby laugh that melted his heart. He put on a clean nappy, glad that he had insisted on stocking up on disposable nappies despite Bones' arguments. He deftly dressed him in a clean jumpsuit and picked him up and held him at eye level. "Now, that feels better, right? Hopefully that's it for today?" he asked his tiny son who grabbed at his nose and leaned forwards latching his mouth onto the tip of it.
Booth chuckled and popped him up on his shoulder as he walked to the door. Brennan was standing in the bedroom door, supporting herself on the walking frame that she hated so much, watching Booth with their baby son.
"Yes. You were right." she said sullenly. Her face brightened when she saw her son in his father's arms start to wave his arms in her direction. "Are they both awake?" she asked. Booth smiled "Yes. And he just presented me with the loveliest gift. Didn't you Tiger?" he kissed the baby's cheek and walked over to Brennan, holding him out for her to kiss. She leaned over him and kissed his lips "Hello baby boy. How's Mommy's little man?" she asked. The baby stared solemnly up at her and blew bubbles. "Do you think they will ever smile at me like they do you Booth?" she asked sadly, tickling her son's cheek gently.
Booth felt like his heart was being squeezed too hard. He leaned in and kissed her. "Of course they will Bones. Don't forget, I had them to myself for three months while you were in hospital. They know who you are. Remember I told you I used to bring them in and lay them on your chest so they would get used to your heartbeat, and your smell and your feel. They know you are their Mom, honey" he said wrapping an arm around her and walking next to her as she shuffled to the nursery.
"I hate having to use this thing" she grumbled as she bumped the walker into the doorframe "and I hate my hair! It needs. Something" she reached up and pushed her fingers through her uneven, choppy hair. Booth sighed softly "I know, I'll take you to the hairdresser and get it fixed. And you're getting so much stronger. And the physiotherapist said you're doing way better than she expected. It won't be long and you'll be getting around under your own steam." He said encouragingly.
She stopped next to one of the cribs and leaned down and tickled the cheek of the baby laying there contentedly sucking on his thumb. She pulled his hand away from his mouth, but he quickly put his hand up to his mouth and started sucking on his thumb contentedly again. "I don't like him sucking his thumb Booth. Where is his pacifier?" she said frowning, looking around. Booth laughed "Good luck with that. He's a stubborn one. Just like his mother I suspect." He said jokingly. Brennan turned and looked at him a frown on her face, then she smiled. "You think he's like me?" she said. Booth nodded, "definitely" he replied. He put the baby he was holding back in his crib and walked over to the chest of drawers by the wall and retrieved a pacifier. "He won't keep it in. Trust me. I've tried everything. He just likes his thumb!" he explained as he pulled his son's thumb out of his mouth and popped the pacifier in as the baby opened his mouth to wail.
The baby sucked on the pacifier for about ten seconds, then, just as Booth had predicted, spat it out and popped his thumb straight back into his mouth and gurgled at his mother, smiling around his thumb, as his tongue tapped on the base of it, making a weird "goya goya goya" sound. Brennan laughed and shook her head. "I see what you mean" she said.
"So I was thinking, it's probably about time we named these little munchkins officially. Don't you?" Booth said. Brennan grinned "I thought you were set on Tiger and Buddy?". Booth laughed, "Well Tiger is pretty cute." he said. Brennan leaned into him "So what do you think?" she asked. Booth cleared his throat. "Well, we talked about it a bit before. Before." He said awkwardly, then continued "And I think we should go with Wyatt Seeley, for Gordon Gordon-Wyatt. I mean, he helped me and you a lot, and I really like the name." Brennan nodded "I love it, and he's named for you too." Booth grinned "and Max Henry. For your dad and Pops, cos Henry was actually Pops name. Hank is just a nickname." he said. He waited for her response. She turned and kissed him deeply "Perfect Booth. Max and Wyatt Booth. Perfect!"
"Right." Booth said suddenly rubbing his hands together. "Angela will be here any minute. I've got to get going as soon as she arrives. I'm due in court in an hour." he said. "I've fed them both and changed them. Christine is downstairs waiting to go to school. I better get moving or"
"Da-ad! Come on! I'm going to be late!" a voice came up the stairs. "And there we go" Booth said. "I'm in trouble again. Come on Bones. I'll help you downstairs." He scooped her up in his arms and kissed her mouth. "You're doing fantastic. You know that right?" he said as he carried her down the stairs. "Are you putting on weight" he added as he dropped her gently down onto the couch. She lashed out and smacked him on the behind as he stepped away, laughing.
"You are so lucky I can't chase you. But you just wait!" she said giggling. "I can't wait for that day Bones. I can't wait!" Booth grinned. Brennan stared at him solemnly "He's going to go to prison for a long time, right?" she asked suddenly. Booth turned around and came back to her and sat next to her, pulling her to him, his face pressed into her hair. "If I could drag him there and lock him up myself I would. Caroline and I are going to make sure he's not going to get out for a very long time babe. Trust me. He's going to regret the day he spoke to you." and ruined our lives he thought to himself. He stood up and said, "Say goodbye to Mommy Christine. We will leave as soon as Aunty Angela pulls up" he said opening the front door. "And here she is!" he announced as Angela pulled into the driveway and parked her car next to Booth's.
"Sorry I'm late! Michael was being so naughty about going to school this morning. And I just wasn't feeling up to dealing with him today" she said. She stopped and stretched up and gave Booth a kiss on the cheek. "How is she?" she asked quietly. "Surprisingly, in good spirits" he replied, "You look terrible" he added, noting Angela's pale face. "Are you not well?" he asked. She shrugged "I don't know. I just felt yuck this morning. I'll be fine. OK, the babies?" she asked. Booth guided Christine out the door in front of him. "In their cribs, in the nursery. Fed, and changed. They will probably need a bath. And Brennan will probably want a shower too. I just ran out of time this morning" he said as he headed down the front path. "Thanks Ang. See you tonight!" he called.
Angela ran out to the front porch and called out "Booth? You're gonna get him, aren't you?" she asked. "Ang, have a little faith, OK? You know that he's going down for a very long time. Forever if I could. Promise. Have a good day with her. Don't get upset if she says something. You know." he hesitated.
"Mean? Thoughtless? Insulting?" Angela grinned. "Been there, done that Booth. I'll consider it a sign that she's getting better" she added. Booth smiled widely and gave her a mini salute with two fingers to his forehead. He got into the car, making sure that Christine was strapped in properly and tooted the car horn as he pulled away from the kerb.
Angela stood watching them for a minute, then took a deep breath. She turned and walked back inside, closing the front door behind her. She grinned at Brennan "so, what do you want to do first. Have breakfast? Or tell me all about your hot physiotherapist?" she asked. Brennan frowned, "Breakfast of course. And my physiotherapist is a woman." She said simply. Angela rolled her eyes "And here I was ready for a big sexy gossip session. You certainly know how to kill my imagination" she said as she walked into the kitchen laughing, taking in the cluttered sink with dishes from probably the last two nights. She knew that Booth was doing his very best. It had to be hard for him. Not only was he the main carer for his two baby sons, he was now caring for his wife too. "Poor guy" she thought to herself as she started stacking dishes into the dishwasher.
"Anything particular you want to eat Bren?" she called out. Brennan turned and looked towards the kitchen, are you stacking dishes?" she called back. Angela cringed "Just a couple of glasses and Booth's breakfast dishes. He told me he just ran out of time this morning. Nothing much." She covered. She didn't want Brennan to worry that the house was not being kept up to her exacting standards. Or to get Booth into trouble.
Booth sat in the dock. He had been sworn in and was glaring straight at the defendant. The man was nervous. He couldn't make eye contact with Booth. Booth scared him. He still had trouble with the two broken ribs from when Booth had thrown him to the ground and kneeled on him, pressing his full weight into his back. He had tried to use that against Booth when he was first arrested, however the officers were old buddies of Booth's and they knew damn well that Booth wasn't one to use brute force like that unless there was a damn good reason. And his pregnant wife, unconscious, on the pavement, because someone had shoved her over? Was an extremely good reason, as far as they were concerned. And they may or may not have caused him a little more pain than necessary while picking him up and dragging him to their squad car despite his protestations that he needed medical help from the paramedics that arrived to attend Brennan. He had been told that he might get to see a doctor at some point, but not to hold his breath. Of course he'd be hard pressed to prove it in a court of law.
The defendant's lawyer stepped before Booth and looked him square in the eye. This was going to be tough. He knew Booth and Brennan. He had worked with them in the past. He also knew that Booth was not going to be easy to intimidate, not that he had any great inclination to do so. He was court appointed to this scumbag and was simply going to do the minimum that the legal system called for him to do. He already knew his client was going down, and he really didn't feel like he wanted to stop it, no matter what his job description said.
"So, Mr Booth, please describe exactly what happened that day?" he said nodding to Booth.
Booth's eyes never broke contact with Jed Marks, the man that had changed his life. "We had just come out of the doctors. My wife and I were waiting for a cab with our six year old daughter when this fucking little prick" The judge looked down at him and coughed and said "Mr Booth, we understand you are upset, but, please refrain from making personally insulting comments about the defendant." he said calmly. Booth pushed down a smirk.
He cleared his throat "This person" he pointed directly at Jed "ran up to my wife and started screaming in her face. Accusing her of ruining his life, and causing him to lose his child. I tried to detain him, but he swung at me and connected with my cheek, causing me to lose my balance and fall over. He then turned back to my wife and shoved her. I wrestled him to the ground and held him down until the police arrived. By the time they arrived, my wife was unconscious on the ground. My daughter still has nightmares about it." Booth swallowed the lump in his throat. Reliving that day was hard for him. He still had feelings of guilt that he hadn't stopped him getting to Bones. "She sustained a fractured skull and bleeding on the brain, resulting in her being in a coma for almost two months. Our twins had to be delivered via c-section. She has been in rehab for about six weeks now, but progress has been slow. She's missed out on so much time with her babies because of that piece of shit." he held up a hand apologetically, as the lawyer opened his mouth to object.
"And you don't believe you antagonised the defendant?" the lawyer asked. "You didn't give him a reason to push your wife over? Perhaps you pushed him first?" he added, hating himself for having to ask. Booth shook his head and banged his hand on the dock "Are you kidding me? NO!" he yelled. The judge turned to Booth "Mr Booth. Please refrain from yelling in my court" he said tilting his head and making eye contact with Booth over his glasses. Booth knew what was happening. He was being told to cool it. He glanced over at Caroline who was frowning at him. Oh boy, now I'm really in the shit he thought, looking down at his hands, now clasped in front of him.
Caroline stood up "I apologise for my client, Judge Williams. He's been under a lot of strain lately as you must understand. A good man, a top FBI Agent, now forced into semi retirement to care for his young daughter, newborn twins while his wife lay, unresponsive, in a coma. Caused, might I remind you, by the actions of that man sitting there." She turned and pointed straight at Jed, staring him down, the corner of her top lip curling up slightly in a sneer. Jed felt a shiver up his spine. He looked down at his shoes. They were dark brown, new, he thought. They were a bit tight. His lawyer had brought them for him to wear, along with a brown suit. He'd never owned a suit before. It was scratchy, he thought, tugging at the shirt collar.
"And now, also added to his strain, he is caring for his wife, who has been released from hospital recently. Helping her with her recovery. Seeley Booth is not the one on trial here. He is a loving, caring, loyal husband and father. And his reactions are surely understandable your honour?" she finished off nodding at Booth.
Jed's lawyer turned around and faced the judge and said, "nothing more your honour". Jed stood up as he walked back to the bench where they were sitting "That's it?" he said. "That's all you're gonna say? I thought you were MY lawyer. I already spent ten years behind bars and lost my kid because of her. My ex took off and I've never seen my son since. I'm a victim here! If I didn't know better" His lawyer sat down and shuffled some papers on the desk, then turned and stared at his client "You'd what Jed? Hit me? Shove me over and put me in a coma?" Jed's mouth opened and closed like a fish, unable to say anything. "sit down Jed" he said to him, and turned back to face the judge.
Booth and Caroline stood on the steps outside the courthouse. Caroline was looking for her keys in her handbag, when she felt herself wrapped up in Booths arms. "What the hell do you think you're doing Cherie? You know I don't like all this mushy stuff." Booth grinned and kissed her firmly on the cheek. "I love you Caroline, you know that right. Hell I might just kiss you again!" he said as he planted his lips over hers. Caroline staggered backwards when he let go of her. She could feel her face burning and swore she could still feel his lips pressing on hers. "Are you crazy now? Kissing a state prosecutor on the lips. Well I never! Go home to your wife and kiss her Cherie. That's where your lips belong!" she said, her voice a bit more high pitched than usual.
Booth laughed out loud, feeling like the cloud that had been hanging over his head had finally blown away. "Thanks again Caroline. Thanks to you that guy won't be getting out for at least twenty years. And no parole. I can't believe you found all that other stuff on him! Wait till I tell Bones!" He all but skipped down the steps, turning to wave to Caroline before jumping in his car and heading home.
Caroline stood and watched him go. "Lordy I love that boy. If I was fifteen years younger and a foot taller and he wasn't married to a damned fine woman, damn if I wouldn't tap that." she thought as her fingers lingered over her lips where he had kissed her. She suddenly shook her head "Damn fool you are Caroline. Get your head back down on your shoulders where it belongs" she muttered and turned and walked back into the court house to finalise some paperwork.